Reducing Cardiovascular Risks: The Role of Alcohol Use

The purpose of this study is to learn whether avoiding alcohol can improve heart and blood vessel health in adults who regularly drink alcohol and have high blood pressure. High blood pressure is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD), including heart attack and stroke.

In this randomized, controlled trial, men and women aged 26 to 49 years who regularly consume alcohol and have high blood pressure will be assigned by chance to either stop drinking alcohol or continue their usual drinking habits for 8 weeks. Researchers will compare changes in blood pressure and other cardiovascular disease risk factors between the two groups.

The information gained from this study may help researchers and health care providers better understand the effects of alcohol consumption on cardiovascular health and whether alcohol abstinence can reduce heart disease risk, especially in adults with high blood pressure.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: Alcohol Drinking; Drinking Behavior; Cardiovascular Risk Factor; High Blood Pressure; At-risk Drinking
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Control arm; Behavioral: Alcohol Abstinence

Detailed Description

The overarching objective is to determine the effect of alcohol abstinence on cardiovascular disease risks in individuals who consume alcoholic beverages over the recommended limits. After baseline assessment, participants will be randomly assigned to receive one of the interventions: either continue their usual drinking habits or to abstain from alcohol drinking. Before and after the 8-week intervention, blood pressure and sub-clinical cardiovascular disease risk factors (including arterial stiffness, endothelial function, and sympathetic nerve activity) will be measured. A longitudinal assessment of objective sleep will be performed throughout the study participation. Participants will be asked to maintain their diet and physical activity throughout the study.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 148
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Chueh-Lung Hwang, PhD, PT; Phone Number: 8172729722; Email: chuehlung.hwang@uta.edu

Study Locations

• United States
  • Texas
    • Arlington, Texas, United States, 76010
      • Science and Engineering Innovation and Research Building (SEIR), University of Texas at Arlington

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion criteria

• Men and women aged 26 to 49 years
• At-risk drinkers who drink over the recommended limits, defined as those with PEth (≥20 ng/dL) or those with a U.S. Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (USAUDIT) score ≥8/7 for men/women
• Elevated blood pressure or hypertension (systolic blood pressure: 120-160 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure 80-100 mmHg)

Exclusion criteria

• History of CVD or cardiovascular events (e.g., stroke, myocardial infarction)
• The presence of myocardial ischemia or arrhythmias with abnormal ECG and blood pressure during a clinically-supervised maximal graded exercise test
• Hypertension (systolic >160 mmHg and diastolic >100 mmHg)
• On more than one anti-hypertensive medication, or on other physician-prescribed medications (but not including oral contraceptives)
• Major psychiatric disorders, including autism, ADHD, bipolar disorder, major depression, schizophrenia, and substance use disorders
• Alcohol use disorder, PEth ≥400 ng/mL, or USAUDIT score ≥ 25
• Current or history of any tobacco use in the past 6 months (including, but not limited to, cigarettes, e-cigarettes, hookah, Nicorette, snus and chewing tobacco)
• Current or history of illicit and recreational drug use (more than 3 times in the past month and more than 15 times in their lifetime)
• Diabetes type 1 & type 2 with fasting blood glucose ≥126 mg/dL
• Presence of renal disease with a creatinine > 1.5 mg/dL
• Presence of liver disease with liver enzymes > 3x the upper limits of normal
• Anemia with a hemoglobin < 8 g/dL
• Diagnosis of chronic inflammatory disease such as, but not limited to, cancer
• Diagnosis of chronic autoimmune diseases such as, but not limited to lupus, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis
• Diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pulmonary fibrosis, pneumonia, lung cancer, and cystic fibrosis
• Diagnosis of neurological diseases, including seizure disorders, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, stroke, traumatic brain injury, and peripheral neuropathies
• Body mass index <18.5 or ≥40 kg/m2
• Unstable body weight (>5% change during the past 6 months)
• Obstructive sleep apnea
• Night-shift work
• Women who are pregnant (or intend to become pregnant while participating in study), breastfeeding, or postmenopausal

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Prevention
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Other: Usual Drinking Habits (Control); Participants will continue their usual alcohol consumption patterns during the study period and will be instructed not to change their lifestyle including alcohol use, diet, and habitual physical activity.	Other: Control arm; Participants will be asked to maintain their usual lifestyle, including alcohol consumption, diet, and physical activity, and will not have access to their study data during the intervention. One week before the intervention, participants will be provided with an Oura Ring and instructed to wear it throughout the study. Every two weeks, participants will meet virtually with the research team (approximately 45 minutes) to complete questionnaires on alcohol use, physical activity, and diet. At week 4, participants will complete a dried blood spot phosphatidylethanol (PEth) test. Participants will also receive weekly reminders by text message or email to ensure Oura Ring data are uploaded successfully.
Experimental: Alcohol Abstinence Intervention; Participants will be instructed to abstain from alcohol for 8 weeks. Throughout the study period, participants will be asked to maintain their usual diet and level of physical activity and avoid making other lifestyle changes, except for abstaining from alcohol.	Behavioral: Alcohol Abstinence; Participants will be instructed to abstain from alcohol for 8 weeks and maintain their usual lifestyle, including diet and physical activity. One week before the intervention, participants will be provided with an Oura Ring and instructed to wear it throughout the study. Every two weeks, participants will meet virtually with the research team (approximately 45 minutes) to receive educational materials and personalized feedback based on phosphatidylethanol (PEth), sleep, and heart rate variability data to support alcohol abstinence. During these meetings, participants will also complete assessments of alcohol use, physical activity, and dietary intake. At week 4, participants will complete a dried blood spot PEth test. Participants will also receive weekly reminders by text message or email to ensure Oura Ring data are uploaded successfully.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in in-laboratory central and peripheral blood pressure	In-laboratory central blood pressure will be measured after a 10-min rest in supine position, while in-laboratory peripheral blood pressure will be measured after a 10-min rest in seated position.	Baseline and after the 8-week intervention
Change in nighttime central and peripheral blood pressure	Blood pressure during nighttime (or sleep) will be measured by using a portable blood pressure monitor.	Baseline and after the 8-week intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in arterial stiffness	Carotid to femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV), the gold standard for noninvasive arterial stiffness assessment, will be measured.	Baseline and after the 8-week intervention
Change in endothelial function as measured by brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD)	Brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD), a noninvasive measure of endothelial function, will be assessed using ultrasound.	Baseline and after the 8-week intervention
Change in muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA)	Muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) in the leg will be measured at rest using microneurography, a direct invasive assessment of sympathetic neural outflow.	Baseline and after the 8-week intervention

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Objective sleep	A longitudinal assessment of objective sleep will be performed with Oura rings.	During the study participation (10 weeks).

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: The University of Texas at Arlington

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): October 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 1, 2031
• Study Completion (Estimated): September 1, 2031

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 14, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 20, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): August 24, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): August 24, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 20, 2026
• Last Verified: August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Vascular Diseases; Cardiovascular Diseases; Behavior; Hypertension; Alcohol Drinking; Drinking Behavior; Organic Chemicals; Alcohols; Ethanol
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2026-0383

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Plan Description: De-identified participant data collected during this study will be submitted to the NIMH Data Archive (NDA). These data will be made available to qualified researchers for scientific research, educational purposes, and other research-related activities in accordance with NDA data access policies.
• IPD Sharing Access Criteria: Submit a Data Access Request to NDA and get approval.

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No